Early Childhood Education Curriculum

Young children are active and avid learners and need a curriculum that reflects this fundamental belief. The Aurora Public School Early Childhood Education Department utilizes the Creative Curriculum for Preschool, which is a comprehensive, scientifically based Early Childhood curriculum for young children ages 3-5. The curriculum has been carefully developed and is grounded on a solid foundation of research (Piaget, Erickson, Vygotsky, Gardner and Simlasky). The Creative Curriculum responds to the new requirements for addressing academic content standards in early childhood education and has been aligned with the National Association for the Education of Young Children guidelines and the National Association of Early Childhood Specialists in the State Department of Education.

Classroom teachers are using the Creative Curriculum Developmental Continuum for Ages 3-5. The Developmental Continuum is designed to assess each child’s progress in four areas of development. The four areas of development include social/emotional development, physical development, cognitive development and language development. The Developmental Continuum is also used to guide program planning. Teachers, along with the other members of the preschool team (Paraeducators, Early Childhood Special Educator, Speech/language Pathologists, Physical and Occupational Therapist and Mental Health Professionals) use the ongoing monitoring of child progress to plan and develop learning opportunities for all children in the classroom.

The Aurora Public School Early Childhood Education Staff believes that parents play a vital role in the education of their children. The preschool program provides parents with opportunities to build a strong connection between home and school. Parent/teacher conferences are held to inform parents about the progress children are making in preschool. In addition to conferences, parents are also invited monthly into their child’s classroom to participate in literacy based activities.